The arrival of the 5G era is changing the way we connect and the picture of our lives at an unprecedented speed. From smartphones, IoT devices to autonomous driving and industrial internet, 5G’s ultra-high speed rate, ultra-low latency and massive connectivity characteristics all put forward extremely high requirements for electronic components, especially PCBA processing technology. Among them, multilayer board processing technology as a key carrier to carry 5G signal transmission, its development level directly determines the performance and reliability of 5G applications.
1、High-frequency and high-speed characteristics: multilayer board to support 5G signal transmission
5G communication using a higher frequency spectrum, which means that the signal transmission frequency is higher, the loss of the board and the signal integrity presents a serious challenge. Traditional single and double-sided boards can no longer meet the requirements, and multilayer boards by increasing the number of layers, can provide a shorter and more optimised transmission path for high-speed signals, effectively reducing signal attenuation and interference. pcba factories in the multilayer board processing, need to master the key technologies include: selecting a low dielectric constant (Dk) and low dielectric loss (Df) of the high-frequency materials, such as Rogers, Teflon and so on; Adoption of sophisticated impedance control techniques to ensure impedance matching of signals during transmission; and implementation of finer wiring and stacking designs, such as coplanar waveguide (CPW) structures, to minimise signal loss and crosstalk and ensure stable transmission of 5G high-speed signals.
2、Miniaturisation and high-density integration: meeting the compact requirements of 5G devices
5G devices, whether base stations, terminals or IoT modules, pursue miniaturisation and high integration. This requires PCBA boards to integrate more and denser components in a limited space. Multi-layer board processing technology is the key to solving this challenge. By increasing the number of board layers, more signal lines, power lines and ground lines can be integrated into a smaller area, achieving high-density wiring. At the same time, blind holes, buried holes, stacked holes and other advanced microvia technology, can effectively save the surface wiring space, and further improve the wiring density. pcba factories in the multilayer board processing, you need to have the ability to microvia drilling, laser drilling, fine line etching, etc., in order to meet the 5G equipment for the extreme miniaturisation and high integration of the stringent requirements. This technical capability is not only reflected in the production equipment, but also requires a team of experienced engineers to accurately control the design and process.
3、Heat Dissipation and Power Integrity: Guaranteeing the Stable Operation of 5G Devices
The high frequency and high power consumption of 5G communications make devices generate a lot of heat during operation. Effective heat dissipation and stable power supply are necessary to ensure the long-term stable operation of 5G equipment. Multilayer board design can provide more possibilities for heat dissipation, such as by using internal copper layers as heat dissipation paths or integrating specialised heat dissipation layers. Multilayer boards also offer advantages in terms of power integrity (PI). By optimising the design of the power and ground layers, power supply noise can be effectively reduced to ensure stable power supply to 5G chips and components. pcba factories need to pay attention to matching the coefficients of thermal expansion of different materials in multilayer board processing, as well as optimising the distribution of the power and ground layers in the stacked layer design, so as to ensure that the boards can still maintain good electrical performance and mechanical stability under high-temperature environments, and thus guarantee that 5G applications can be operated reliably under high load conditions. Reliable operation under high load conditions.
4、Testing and Reliability: Quality Cornerstone for 5G Applications
5G applications have extremely high requirements for reliability, and any minor defects may lead to communication interruptions or performance degradation. PCBA factories are crucial to the testing of multilayer boards after processing. In addition to the traditional ICT (in-circuit test) and FCT (functional test), it is also necessary to introduce higher-frequency test equipment to verify the high-frequency characteristics of multilayer boards. In addition, the interlayer connection and microvia reliability of multilayer boards need to undergo rigorous reliability tests, such as thermal shock test, drop test, etc., to ensure that they can still work stably in harsh environments.The selection of raw materials, the control of process parameters, and the comprehensive test verification in the PCBA processing process of PCBA factories are all key to ensure that multilayer boards meet the stringent quality requirements of 5G applications.
The development of multilayer board processing technology is the cornerstone for PCBA factories to support the take-off of 5G applications. From high-frequency and high-speed signal transmission, miniaturisation and high-density integration, to heat dissipation and power integrity, to stringent testing and reliability verification, PCBA factories’ technological breakthroughs and capability enhancement in these aspects are continuing to provide strong support for the large-scale commercialisation and innovative applications of 5G technology.